Doblin: The Democratic machine broke down in Paterson

Alfred P. Doblin is the editorial page editor of The Record. Contact him at doblin@northjersey.com. Follow AlfredPDoblin on Twitter.

JEFF JONES will soon be out of a job and Andre Sayegh will not be ordering new stationery, but the biggest loser in Tuesday’s mayoral election in Paterson was the Democratic Party machine. It went all in for City Council President Sayegh. Voters were unimpressed. In fact, they may have been repulsed.

That incumbent Jones lost is no surprise; the mayor has been a disappointment almost from Day One – he held his inaugural celebration in a city other than Paterson. But Joey Torres’ decisive victory is a sign Patersonians may be united behind one concept: Don’t tell us who we should vote for.
Torres, a former mayor with a $74,000 ethical cloud hanging over him, ran a smart campaign. He ran a Bill Pascrell campaign, as in Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr., former Paterson mayor and current Sayegh supporter. In 2012, Pascrell fought seemingly impossible odds to defeat fellow Democratic congressman Steve Rothman in the newly drawn 9th District. Pascrell got out the vote in Paterson in record numbers and won.

His support of Sayegh may have seemed the final nail in Torres’ bid to return to City Hall, but it wasn’t. It turns out Pascrell is not a brand; he’s a unique feisty representative who has a base that will follow him, but not necessarily all the people he supports. And there has been much speculation Pascrell might have been happier with Assemblyman Benjie Wimberly as the candidate.

Wimberly chose not to run. His support of Sayegh was publicly lukewarm. Maybe Pascrell would have been more effective advocating for Wimberly; I can’t say. But Pascrell support is not enough to get someone elected, particularly when Pascrell is not on the ballot. Another lesson from this election may be that Pascrell will not be able to hand pick his eventual successor in Congress.

Equally powerful Democrat, Passaic County Democratic Party Chairman John Currie, sailed the Titanic last year with Democratic gubernatorial candidate Barbara Buono. Sayegh was a far better candidate; he’s charming, energetic and optimistic. But that means little when people are dying on the streets and voters are not sure if charm and optimism will be able to stare down entrenched bureaucratic forces in Paterson and Trenton that impede needed reforms.

Currie’s backing of Sayegh may have made skeptics more fearful Sayegh was a machine candidate.

Paterson needs a Chris Christie without orange traffic cones and there was no one like that on the ballot. Wimberly might have been more sellable than Sayegh, but there is no evidence he would be any better at governance than anyone else. Four years ago, Jeff Jones was a great candidate. Four years later, he has proved a poor mayor.

In the old days, New Jersey political bosses could get whomever they wanted elected to office. That may still be true in some parts of this state, perhaps ones closer to Delaware than is Paterson. The racial and cultural divisions within Paterson work against a Passaic County Democratic machine that may be about one generation removed from 21st century Paterson.

Surprisingly then, the real elephant in the room is the GOP. As former Paterson Mayor Pat Kramer said to me Thursday, “There is an opportunity there.”

Republican Kramer was an ardent supporter of Torres, despite Torres’ refusal to return a $74,000 severance check from the city after losing his reelection bid in 2010. In a phone conversation, Kramer noted the strong Democratic support for Sayegh gives Republicans an opportunity to reintroduce themselves to Paterson voters, particularly Torres supporters.

Currie may believe all those Torres voters were Democrats. Maybe they were. But they were Democrats who did not care what Democratic leadership said. And that is a Ronald Reagan moment for the county GOP – Reagan Democrats made independent decisions. While I do not see Torres leading a GOP rally outside City Hall, he would be a fool to forget who supported him and who did not.

That is another lesson out of the Pascrell playbook. Jones backed Rothman over native son Pascrell in 2012. Not every political choice is personal, but there is nothing more personal than an endorsement. Or lack of one. Pascrell and Torres will have to find a way to patch things up enough to move on. Paterson needs its congressman and mayor working together.

Look to Kramer to make that peace. He was the behind-the-scenes negotiator in the longstanding feud between Republicans Peter Murphy and Scott Rumana. That intraparty war was killing the county Republican organization. It is not insignificant that Kramer’s choice for party leadership ultimately prevailed: John Traier.

Bridge woes aside, Christie is still the most powerful Republican in New Jersey. The Democratic-controlled Legislature can pass all the bills it wants but without a Christie signature, there are no new laws. Overriding a Christie veto is as likely as a Jeff Jones comeback as mayor in four years.

Soon-to-be Mayor Torres might want to forge a relationship with the Republican governor – it would settle some scores with Democrats and it may actually help the people of Paterson. The third-largest city in New Jersey is very much dependent on the kindness of strangers. State aid is essential to Paterson’s very existence. As Kramer said, “there is an opportunity” here.

Republicans should take note that Paterson — the natural base of the Democratic Party — rejected the Democratic machine candidate. Statewide, Republicans may not seize the moment. And Christie’s policies may often favor communities less challenged than Paterson. But all politics is local and the elections that have the most direct impact on people’s lives are usually local ones.

Paterson may never turn out en masse to support a Romney or a Bush, but they had no problem rejecting a Sayegh and a Jones. Maybe these voters won’t become Republicans, but clearly on Tuesday, they weren’t Democrats.